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Title:Planningandengineeringdata.2.FishCanning...

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1.CANNINGPRINCIPLES
1.1IntroductiontoCanning
1.2SelectionofThermalProcessingConditions
1.3HeatResistanceofBacterialSpores
1.4LethalityofHeatDuringHeatingandCooling
1.5CalculatingFoValues

1.1IntroductiontoCanning
Thepurposeofthermalprocessingduringmanufactureofcannedfisheryproductsisthedestructionofbacteriaby
applicationofmoistheat.Onlyhavingsatisfiedthesafetyrequirementsofprotectingconsumerhealth,andthecommercial
requirementsofpreventingnonpathogenicspoilage,doesthecannersetaboutchoosingathermalprocessschedulethat
willoptimisethesensoryqualityofthefinishedproduct.
Ofthebacteriacontaminatingfisheryproducts,some(thepathogenicbacteria)causefoodpoisoningwhileothersonlyspoil
thefood.OfparticularconcerntofishcannersisthepossibilityoftherebeingcontaminationbyClostridiumbotulinumwhich,
ifpresent,canformheatresistantsporescapableofwithstandingamildthermalprocess.Asthismicroorganismcangrow
atthepHoffishfleshitisimportantthattheprocessorensurethatallhiscanshavereceivedaprocessthatissufficiently
severetokillsporesandvegetativeformsofthebacterium.SurvivalofClostridiumbotulinum,afterthethermalprocess,isan
extremehealthriskaslowacidcannedfoods(pH>4.5)supportgrowthoftheorganism,andundercertainconditionswill
alsofavourformationoftheneurotoxinresponsibleforoutbreaksofbotulism.
Sterilizationisaheattreatmentgivenfoodscapableofsupportingthegrowthofheatresistantsporeformingbacteria.
Sterilizationprocessesdestroyallpathogeniccontaminantsandallothermicroorganismscapableofgrowingundernormal
storageconditionssurvivorsoftheprocesswillbeextremelyheatresistantsporeswhichposenohealthriskandonlygrow
atelevatedtemperatures(=40C).Ratherthanmakecannedfoodsabsolutelysterile,cannersaimfor"commercialsterility"
whichmeansthatthecontentsaresafe(asallpathogenicmicroorganismshavebeendestroyed)andshelfstableatnormal
storagetemperatures.Werethethermalprocessdesignedtomakeallcansabsolutelysterile,therewouldbeunnecessary
lossofsensoryandnutritionalqualitywithouttherebeinganyincreaseinthesafetyoftheproduct.
Thehigherthetemperatureofsterilizationthegreateristherateofthermaldestruction,whichiswhycannersprocesstheir
cannedfishinsteamunderpressureratherthaninwateratatmosphericpressure.Therateofthermaldestructionisalso
affectedbythenatureoftheproduct(liquidsheatfasterthansolids)andthecontainersize(largecansoffishpackedinbrine
takelongertoreachlethaltemperatures,thandosmallcanscontainingthesameproduct).Thetotalsterilizationeffectofa
thermalprocesscanbeexpressedasthesumofallthesterilizationeffectsachievedbyallthetimetemperature
combinationsthroughouttheentirethermalprocess.Byconvention,sterilizingeffectisexpressedinstandardunitsof
minutesat121.1C,sothat.anentireprocessingcycleisexpressedasbeingequivalent,toholdingtheproductat121.lC
foragiventime.TheunitofsterilizationistheFounit,whereanFovalueofoneminuteisequivalenttoholdingtheproductat
121.1Cforoneminuteandthencoolingitinstantly:

1.2SelectionofThermalProcessingConditions
Thepurposeofsterilizingcansoffisheryproductsistoridthecontainerandthecontentsofallpathogenicmicroorganisms
andtoprevent.spoilagebynonpathogeniccontaminantsundernormalstorageconditions.Selectionofprocessing
conditionsnecessarytofulfillthesecriteriaisbaseduponexperimentalstudiesinwhichtherateofheatpenetrationtothe
slowestheatingpoint(SHP)ofthecontainerismeasuredduringsimulatedretortingcycles.Thedatafromthesetrials(or
fromsuitablereferencesources)are.usedbyfishcanningtechnologiststodeterminetheprocessingtemperaturesandtimes
necessarytorenderthecannedproductcommerciallysterile.Manufacturersofcannedfish(andalllowacidcannedfoods)
canspecifytheirthermalprocessesintermsoftargetFovalues,wheretheFovalueisameasureofthermalprocessing
severity.HavingselectedanappropriateFovalue(whichmaybefarinexcessofthatrequiredtoreducetoanacceptably
lowlevel,theprobabilityofsurvivalofClostridiumbotulinumsporesasmaybethecasewhentheprocessisdesignedto
bringaboutbonesoftening)thecannerthenadoptsatimeandatemperatureforthethermalprocesswhichwillensureits
deliveryattheSHPofthecontainer.

1.3HeatResistanceofBacterialSpores
Theheatresistanceofbacterialsporesisspecifiedbythetimerequiredtokill90percentofthepopulationatconstant
temperaturethisenablesacomparisonofheatresistanceofsporesofmanydifferentbacteria.Formostsporesof
importanceincannedfoodspoilagetheirheatresistanceismeasuredat121.1C(250F),acommonretortingtemperature,
andisexpressedastheDvalue.AtypicalplotofthenumberofsurvivorsagainstheatingtimeisshowninFigure1.Itcanbe
seenthatthetimetoreducethepopulationfrom1000000to100000isthesameasthatrequiredtoreduceitfrom100to
10.Thatis,theDvalueisconstantforspecificbacterialsporeswhentheyaresubjectedtoheatatconstanttemperature.In
Table1aresummarisedtheDvaluesofbacterialsporesimportantincannedfoods.
DestructionofallsporesofClostridiumbotulinumistheminimumsafetyrequirement,whenthermallyprocessinglowacid
cannedfoods.Cannersaimtoreducetheprobabilityofonesporesurvivingthethermalprocesstosuchalowlevelthat,for
allpracticalpurposes,thecontentsofthecontainerposenohealthriskduetosurvivalofClostridiumbotulinum(spores).
Experiencehasshownthataprocessequivalentinsterilisingeffecttotwelvedecimalreductionsofthepopulationof
Clostridiumbotulinumissufficienttoprotectconsumersafety.Suchaprocessisreferredtoasa"12D"processanditis
equivalenttoholdingthecontentsofthecontainerat121.1Cfor2.8min(12D=12x0.23=2.8min).Aprocessassevere
asthiswillsatisfyrequirements(underconditionsofgoodmanufacturingpractice)however,itwillbeinsufficienttoreduceto
acommerciallyacceptablelevel,theprobabilityofsurvivalfortheextremelyheatresistantspores(withDvaluesof2.0to5.0
min)ofnonpathogenicbacteria.Thisiswhycannedfishmanufacturersselectathermalprocesswhichgoesbeyondthe
safetyrequirementsofdestructionofClostridiumbotulinum.

Figure1Survivorcurveforbacterialdestructionatconstanttemperature
Althoughtheprobabilityofsurvivalforsporesofnonpathogenicheatresistantbacteriamaybeseveralthousandtimesthat
forClostridiumbotulinumspores,theirpresenceisofnogreatconcerntocannersfortworeasons:
1. shouldtheyleadtospoilage,thereisnoassociatedhealthrisk,and
2. theyonlygrowattemperaturesabove40C(i.e.,theyarethermophilic)andtheiroptimumgrowthtemperatureis
around55C,whichisabovethatinmostwarehouses)andretailoutlets.
Table1Decimalreductiontimes(Dvalues)ofbacteriaimportantinlowacidcannedfoods.
Organism

Dvalue
(min.at121.1C)

B.stearothermophilus

4.05.0

C.thermosaccharlyticum

3.04.0

D.nigrificans*

2.03.0

C.botulinum(A&B)

0.10.23

C.sporogenes(P.A.3679)

0.11.5

B.coagulans

0.010.07

*FormerlyC.nigrificans

1.4LethalityofHeatDuringHeatingandCooling
Althoughbyconventionthesterilisingeffectofaprocessisexpressedinstandardunitsofminutesat121.1C(thesymbol
usedisFo).theproductinsideacandoesnotinstantaneouslyreachprocessingtemperatureandinsomecasesof
conductionheating,thetemperatureatthethermalcentreofthecanneverreachesthatoftheheatingmedium(whichneed
notbeat121.1C).Thisparadoxisresolvedbymakinguseofarelationshipwhichshowsthattherateofchangeinthe
thermaldestructionofbacteria(i.e.therateofchangeintheirDvalues)islogarithmicaroundtemperaturescommonlyused
inheatsterilisation.Thismeansthatthelethalrateofdestructionatanytemperaturecanberelatedtothatatareference
temperature.Thisrelationshipisgraphicallyrepresented.inFigure2whichshowsathermaldeathtimecurvepassing
through1minat121.1C.This"phantom"curveshowsthatrelativetothelethalrateofunityat121.1Cthelethalratesat
91.1,101.1,111.1,131.1,141.1and151.1Care0.001,0.01,0.1,10,100and1000,respectively.
Thesterilisingeffectofathermalprocess(theprocessFovalue)canthereforebecomputedbyintegratingthecombined
lethaleffectofexposureatalltime/temperaturecombinationsthroughouttheprocess.Thismeansthataprocessthat
deliversanFovalueof2.8min(thesocalled12DprocessforClostridiumbotulinum)isequivalentin.sterilisingeffectto
heatingthecontentsofthecanto121.1Cinstantly,holdingitatthattemperaturefor2.8min,andthencoolingitinstantly.
Similarly,aprocessforsolidstylecannedtunapackedin84x46.5mmcansmayhaveatargetFovalueof10min,which
canbeachievedbyprocessingfor74minat116Cor50minat121.1C.Witheachprocess,however,thesterilisingeffect
isthesameas,andequivalentto,holdingthecanoftunaat121.1Cfor10minunderconditionsofinstantaneousheating
andcooling.

1.5CalculatingFoValues
TobesureofcommercialsterilitytheFovalueattheSHP,thethermalcentreofthecontainer,mustbesufficienttokillall
Clostridiumbotulinumandreducesurvivalprobabilitiesforothermoreheatresistantbacteriatoanacceptablelevel.Itis
assumedthatbacterialsporeswillrandomlycontaminatethefishandthatthereforetheymaybelocatedattheSHP.
Althoughapessimisticapproach,thiscatersforthe``worstcase``scenarioonwhichproductsafetymustbebased.
ThemeasureFovalueheatpenetrationstudiesareconductedforrepresentativepacksofthecannedfishfilledtothe
maximumfillweightlikelytobeencountered.Thesecansarethenfittedwiththermocoupleprobeswhichmustbelocatedso
astomeasurethetemperatureattheSHP.(Ascantocanvariationintherateofheatpenetrationcanbesignificant,itis
recommendedthatatleasttwelvereplicatesaretestedbeforedatafromtheslowestheatingofallthetestcansareusedto
computetheFovaluefortheprocess).Thethermocouplesareconnectedtodigitalorgraphicalrecorders,someofwhich
indicatetheproducttemperatureduringthethermalprocess,whileotherscanbepurchasedwhichautomaticallycomputeFo
value.Whereautomaticcomputationisnotpossible,thetemperaturetimedatacanbeusedinanumberofwaystocalculate
Fovalue.

Figure2Thermaldeathtimecurvepassingthrough1minat121.1C.

1.5.1Theimprovedgeneralmethod
Aplotoftemperatureversustimeismadeonspeciallyconstructedlethalratepaperwhichhasonitslefthandverticalaxis
producttemperature(onalogscale)whileontheotherverticalaxisisdrawnlethalrate(onalinearscale).Thusforeach
temperaturecanbeshownthecorrespondinglethalrate.Timeisplottedalongthehorizontalaxis,usingaconvenientscale.
Theareaunderthegraphwhichrepresentstheproductofexposuretimeatalllethalratesthroughouttheprocess,isthen
dividedbytheareaequivalenttothatofanFovalueofunity.Thisyieldsthetotalsterilisingeffect,ortheFovalue,forthe
process.InFigure3isshownahypotheticalheatpenetrationcurveforasemisolidproductprocessedfor40minat120C.

Figure3Heatpenetrationlethalratecurve
Thetemperatureprofileshownisthatoftheslowestheatingpoint.Bycountingsquaresorusingaplanimetertheareaunder
thegraphisfoundtobe71cm,whiletheareacorrespondingtooneunitoflethality(Fo=1)is4cm.Thereforethetotal
processlethalitycanbecalculated,

=71/4
=17.5min

Thismeansthetotalsterilisingeffectoftheprocessisequivalentto17.5minutesat121.1C,assuminginstantaneous
heatingandcooling.Wehavenowexpressedtheseverityofsterilisation,asexperiencedattheslowestheatingpointofthe
can.
Intheworkedexample,theretortwasnotoperatingatthereferencetemperature(121.1C)nordidtheproductreachretort
temperature.Itisimportantnottoconfusethespecificationfortheprocess(40min/120C)withFofortheprocess.A
processspecificationaloneindicateslittleaboutthetotalprocesslethality.Itwouldbepossibletohaveaprocess
specificationof60minat121.1CandFovaluesof,say,6.2minand11.5minfor450gand225gcansrespectively,the
differentprocessseverityinthiscasereflectingcansize.Similarmodeofheating(convection/conduction),packweightand
filltemperaturecanallaffecttheFovalueeventhoughretortingconditionsmaybeconstant.
TOSUMMARIZE
Theimprovedgeneralmethodtakesaccountoftheentireheatingandcoolingeffectsincludinganychangesinheat
penetrationratescausedbyproductgelationorliquefaction.
Thethermalcharacteristicsoftheproductneednotbeknown.WhilethismakesFocalculationsimpleitlimitsthe
versatilityofthetechnique.
Theoreticallythethermalcentreofaconductionheatingcanisatthegeometriccentre,whilethatforaconvection
heatingproductisslightlybelowthisontheverticalaxis.Itisimportanttolocatethermocoupletipsatthethermal
centreforsolidpacksheatingbyconductionbutlesssoforconvectionheating,astherapidheattransfercausedby
convectioncurrentspreventsanysignificantheatinglags.

1.5.2Thetrapezoidalintegrationmethod.
AmathematicalmethodinwhichthetimetemperaturedataareusedtomeasurechangesIinlethalityduringheatingand
cooling.Byusingstandardtimeintervalsthelethalvalue:iscomputedinstagesandthecumulativeLvaluefortheprocessis
foundwithouttheneedforgraphicalrepresentationoftheheatingandcoolingcurves.
TheFovaluefortheprocessiscalculatedbysummingalltheLvaluesandmultiplyingthisvaluebythestandardtimeinterval
betweenreadings.
Thetrapezoidalmethodalsoallowssimplecalculationofthecontributiontototalprocesslethalityoftheheatingandcooling
portionsoftheprocess.
InTable2areshownLvaluesandinTable3isshownaworkedexampleinwhichtemperaturewasrecordedat5minute
intervalsforaprocessof60minutesat121.1C.
TocalculateFofortheprocess:SummingtheLvaluesgives2.925whichwhenmultipliedby5(thetimeintervalbetween
readings)givesanFovalueof14.6min.
TocalculateFofortheheatingphase:ThesumofLvaluesattime25and60min(0and0.776)isdividedby2andthisvalue
(0.388)isaddedtothesumofLvaluesfromtime30to55min.Thisgives1.730whichwhenmultipliedby5yieldsonFoof
8.6minfortheprocesslethalityatthestagewhenthesteamwasturnedoff.
TheImprovedGeneralMethodwhichreliesonatemperaturetimeplot.fortheentireprocessisthemostaccurateofall
methodsforcalculatingFovalueandforthisreasonisfrequentlyquotedasthe"referencemethod".LiketheTrapezoidal
Methodtherearenoassumptionsmaderegardingproductheatingandcoolingcharacteristics,howeverthebenefitsof
accuracyhavetobebalancedagainstthelackofversatility.DatafromonesetoftrialscannoteasilybeusedtocalculateFo
valueswhenproducttemperatureand/orretorttemperatureare(is)altered.Thismeansthatonceprocessconditionsare
alterednewtemperaturetimedatamustbecollectedunderthenewexperimentalconditions.
Table2ValuesofLfortemperaturerangingfrom90Cto130.9Cin0.1Cintervals
C

0.0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

0.8

0.9

90

0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001

91

0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001

92

0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.002

93

0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002

94

0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002

95

0.002 0.003 0.003 0.003 0.003 0.003 0.003 0.003 0.003 0.003

96

0.003 0.003 0.003 0.003 0.003 0.003 0.004 0.004 0.004 0.004

97

0.004 0.004 0.004 0.004 0.004 0.004 0.004 0.005 0.005 0.005

98

0.005 0.005 0.005 0.005 0.005 0.005 0.006 0.006 0.006 0.006

99

0.006 0.006 0.006 0.007 0.007 0.007 0.007 0.007 0.007 0.008

100 0.008 0.008 0.008 0.008 0.009 0.009 0.009 0.009 0.009 0.010
101 0.010 0.010 0.010 0.010 0.011 0.011 0.011 0.011 0.012 0.012
102 0.012 0.013 0.013 0.013 0.013 0.014 0.014 0.014 0.015 0.015
103 0.015 0.016 0.016 0.017 0.017 0.017 0.018 0.018 0.019 0.019
104 0.019 0.020 0.020 0.021 0.021 0.022 0.022 0.023 0.023 0.024
105 0.025 0.025 0.026 0.026 0.027 0.028 0.028 0.029 0.030 0.030
106 0.031 0.032 0.032 0.033 0.034 0.035 0.035 0.036 0.037 0.038
107 0.039 0.040 0.041 0.042 0.043 0.044 0.045 0.046 0.047 0.048

108 0.049 0.050 0.051 0.052 0.054 0.055 0.056 0.058 0.059 0.060
109 0.062 0.063 0.065 0.066 0.068 0.069 0.071 0.072 0.074 0.076
110 0.078 0.079 0.081 0.083 0.085 0.087 0.089 0.091 0.093 0.095
111 0.098 0.100 0.102 0.105 0.107 0.110 0.112 0.115 0.117 0.120
112 0.123 0.126 0.129 0.132 0.135 0.138 0.141 0.145 0.148 0.151
113 0.155 0.158 0.162 0.166 0.170 0.174 0.178 0.182 0.186 0.191
114 0.195 0.200 0.204 0.209 0.214 0.219 0.224 0.229 0.234 0.240
115 0.245 0.251 0.257 0.263 0.269 0.275 0.282 0.288 0.295 0.302
116 0.309 0.316 0.324 0.331 0.339 0.347 0.355 0.363 0.372 0.380
117 0.389 0.398 0.407 0.417 0.427 0.437 0.447 0.457 0.468 0.479
118 0.490 0.501 0.513 0.525 0.537 0.550 0.562 0.575 0.589 0.603
119 0.617 0.631 0.646 0.661 0.676 0.692 0.708 0.724 0.741 0.759
120 0.776 0.794 0.813 0.832 0.851 0.871 0.891 0.912 0.933 0.955
121 0.977 1.000 1.023 1.047 1.072 1.096 1.122 1.148 1.175 1.202
122 1.230 1.259 1.288 1.318 1.349 1.380 1.413 1.445 1.479 1.514
123 1.549 1.585 1.622 1.660 1.698 1.738 1.778 1.820 1.862 1.905
124 1.950 1.995 2.042 2.089 2.138 2.188 2.239 2.291 2.344 2.399
125 2.455 2.512 2.570 2.630 2.692 2.754 2.818 2.884 2.951 3.020
126 3.090 3.162 3.236 3.311 3.388 3.467 3.548 3.631 3.715 3.802
127 3.890 3.981 4.074 4.169 4.266 4.365 4.467 4.571 4.677 4.786
128 4.898 5.012 5.129 5.248 5.370 5.495 5.623 4.754 5.888 6.026
129 6.166 6.310 6.457 6.607 6.761 6.918 7.079 7.244 7.413 7.586
130 7.762 7.943 8.128 8.318 8.511 8.710 8.913 9.120 9.333 9.550

Note:

z=10C
T=producttemperature
Table3TrapezoidalmethodforintegrationoflethalratedatatocalculateFovalue
Time
(min)

Temperature(C)

24

24.5

10

34

15

54

20

72.5

25

87

30

98

0.005

35

105

0.025

40

110.5

0.087

45

114.5

0.219

50

117

0.389

55

119

0.617

60

120

0.776 1.730

*STEAMOFF
65

120

0.776

70

106

0.031

75

88

L/t

Fo
(min)

8.6

2.925

14.6